Situation Analysis: Exploring Linkages Between the Climate Crisis and Humanitarian Health

This situation analysis focuses on the interlinkages between climate crisis and humanitarian health. It aims to help us understand the evidence available and identify the key stakeholders working across the climate crisis and humanitarian health nexus. We’ll be using this report to inform how we might position ourselves in this space, particularly through our Research for Health in Humanitarian Crises (R2HC) programme.   This situation analysis could be a useful resource for those outside our organisation who may be interested in understanding this landscape, its key debates, and the major actors active in this space.  The report highlights that:  

• Although there is a growing body of evidence on climate change and health, there is little evidence specific to humanitarian populations
• There are high levels of uncertainty (amongst funders and knowledge brokers) on what to do about the evidence gap for populations already affected by humanitarian crisis.  
• This is a fast-moving area, with a diverse and growing group of stakeholders, however in the research-policy space, humanitarian stakeholders are not well represented.
• Increased visibility of the needs of the humanitarian sector in conversations related to the climate crisis is necessary.

Next steps

To take forward our work in climate and humanitarian health we jointly hosted a webinar with Fogarty International Center of the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH),for stakeholders to share knowledge, identify challenges, and discuss emerging research opportunities in this critical area. A summary blog and recording of the event are now available.

In May 2025 we hosted a Research Forum together with APHRC, with an objective to "galvanise action on evidence gaps for climate-induced health impacts". A summary of the climate and health discussions is available to read.

Looking ahead, we are scoping the development of national Humanitarian Health and Climate Collaboratives, which would convene humanitarian health actors, climate scientists, and communities affected, to co-create context-relevant evidence and new solutions to improve health outcomes in the face of the climate crisis.

Get in touch

If you or your organisation work in the climate crisis and humanitarian health space, and you would be interested in collaborating with us, please reach out to [email protected]. We are continuing our scoping work to see where we can best support work in this area.